Rong Chen Zi was deeply troubled.
He Bang truly refused to sleep with him at night anymore, spending every evening on Ye Tian’s bed. Ye Tian genuinely cared for her — she had even made a special bath scrubbing cloth to polish her shell. Worried that the shell might dry out, she also applied moisturizing fragrant ointment to it, leaving the river clam smelling fragrant and pleasant all day long. Every night she even gave He Bang a late-night snack, which led to the river clam yanking and tugging at the hem of Ye Tian’s clothes the moment she felt hungry. Rong Chen Zi forcibly carried her back to his room once, but she cried continuously until the middle of the night without sleeping, and in the end Ye Tian came over and carried her back out of worry.
Under Ye Tian’s care, He Bang grew quickly. By mid-March she was already two feet long. That day Rong Chen Zi went to Baiyun Monastery to attend a ceremonial gathering, and he specifically brought Qingzhen along with him. Qingxuan and Qingsu could not stop their private smiles — serves you right for currying favor with the river clam. Now look — you’ve displeased Master, haven’t you?
With Qingzhen gone, the culinary skills of the other young disciples in the monastery were lacking, so Ye Tian had no choice but to cook herself. Qingxuan and Qingsu helped watch over He Bang when they had nothing else to do. Ye Tian spread a cool grass mat on the floor, and He Bang crawled back and forth in the middle. The only way to burn off her energy was to snatch toys from Qingxuan’s hand and drag them over to Qingsu. The two most accomplished disciples of Qingxu Monastery’s Daoist Master Rong Chen Zi sat on meditation cushions on either side of the grass mat, reading scripture while absently holding rope-woven toys and waiting for her to come and snatch them.
In one moment of inattention, she clamped onto Qingxuan’s hand. By now her shell was quite large, and the grip on a finger was genuinely painful. Qingxuan frowned, then bowed his head — and suddenly a burst of laughter rang out beside his ear, clear and bright as a silver bell. Qingxuan and Qingsu looked up simultaneously.
Sitting on the grass mat was a little girl of about six or seven years old. She wore a water-blue bubble dress; her hair was styled in two buns on top of her head, with neat even bangs across her forehead. A lustrous white jade flower was pinned at her temple, two little red coral beads hung at her ears, and her small bare feet were white and tender, still without any shoes.
Rosy-cheeked and soft as pale dough, she lay sprawled in front of Qingxuan, staring at him with big round eyes.
Qingxuan was afraid of startling her, yet did not know how to greet her — no matter what he called her, it felt awkward. Qingsu was also somewhat rattled and muttered: “Master has truly committed a transgression… defiling a child… and she’s so young…”
Qingxuan slapped him on the head: “What nonsense are you talking! And you dare meddle in Master’s affairs?!”
The two of them stared at He Bang for a long while. Eventually, He Bang could no longer maintain her human form and reverted back. At a loss for entertainment, she went back to clamping toys and playing the passing game. Qingxuan and Qingsu were still reeling from the shock of what they had just witnessed.
That evening, Ye Tian was feeding He Bang soup when Qingzhen’s voice came from outside: “Martial Aunt, Master is back.”
Before Ye Tian could even respond, He Bang was already struggling to crawl toward the door. Ye Tian was somewhat relieved — it seemed He Bang finally did miss Senior Brother after all. He Bang crawled out off the grass mat and made her way laboriously toward the entrance. Rong Chen Zi and Qingzhen had just arrived at the foot of the mountain and, seeing her crawling toward them with great effort, his eyes immediately brightened. He gently lifted her up and stroked her fragrant shell: “Were you well-behaved at home?”
He Bang kept squirming and struggling in his hands. Rong Chen Zi had no choice but to set her on the ground. The moment she was released, she went straight for Qingzhen, clamping onto his trouser leg and demanding to be picked up. Qingzhen gave a small cough, glanced cautiously at Master, then looked at the river clam before him, who was practically brimming with enthusiasm. With no other option, he bent down and picked her up, but he directed his words to Master: “She’s grown plumper, hasn’t she?”
Rong Chen Zi stood where he was, expression grave. After a long pause, he said: “Mm.”
Qingzhen made only a token gesture of holding her before immediately handing her back to Master — ignoring He Bang’s enthusiastic attempts to detain him (she had clamped onto his clothes) — and wrenched his garment free before bolting to his room. He Bang had no choice but to remain in Rong Chen Zi’s arms.
When Rong Chen Zi returned to the monastery, he noticed something amiss — she was perhaps on the verge of taking on a form. An immortal and spiritual energy had begun to permeate and overflow through the monastery, causing the vegetation to flourish and the spring water to run even fuller than usual. Sensitive birds and creatures had begun to flock to Lingxia Mountain, all hoping to absorb a trace of immortal essence — for who knew, perhaps some among them might be fortunate enough to attain the Dao.
Rong Chen Zi’s brows furrowed deeply, and he quietly let out a long sigh.
That night, He Bang still wanted to crawl toward Ye Tian’s room. Rong Chen Zi kept her encircled. He was skilled at slaying demons and demons, upholding justice, and all such matters — winning a girl’s affection was something he was genuinely not adept at. In no time at all, He Bang had cried herself into a little sniffling clam. Rong Chen Zi refused to indulge her; he thought bad habits must not be allowed to form, so he never fed her at night, which meant she would eat more during the day and have a more restful sleep. In the daytime, he would finish his morning prayers and then rouse her to play, keeping her routine very regular.
But He Bang clearly disliked this schedule. She opened her shell over and over, crawling back and forth to communicate that she wanted a late-night snack. Rong Chen Zi was a man of firm principles — he was fond of her, yet once a rule was set, it allowed no flexibility. So he patted He Bang’s shell: “No eating at night. Sleep!”
He Bang whimpered and cried for a while. Seeing that he truly had no intention of paying attention to her, she finally retracted into her shell and went still. When Rong Chen Zi’s breathing gradually deepened, she decided that this old Daoist was surely fast asleep, and quietly tried to crawl off the bed. When she landed, she lost her balance and fell with a loud thud. This startled Rong Chen Zi, who immediately leaned over to check her shell. A shell of a thousand years — not so easily cracked. She had only been jostled about inside it rather badly.
Rong Chen Zi felt it was time to reclaim authority. If he did not establish some rules now, there was no telling how willful she would become. He picked her up, said not a word, and pinned her under his arm: “You are going nowhere. Sleep.”
He Bang squirmed and twisted under his arm and could not crawl free. In her desperation, she suddenly transformed with a puff — becoming the six-or-seven-year-old little girl again — and nimbly slipped out from under Rong Chen Zi’s armpit. She made to dash for Ye Tian’s room. Rong Chen Zi was far more stunned than Qingxuan and Qingsu had been. He caught He Bang’s soft little hand and pulled her back onto the bed. Yet inwardly he was unsettled — this… was he still supposed to sleep in the same bed as her?
He Bang was not thinking about any of that. She tried every means to wrench her hand free. Rong Chen Zi was caught between tears and laughter. He was a preeminent master of the Daoist school — he could hardly keep wrestling with a small girl. He simply held her by the wrist: “All right! I’ll take you to Xiao Ye’s room.”
He Bang pouted, looking thoroughly displeased, but upon hearing Ye Tian’s name, she spread her arms wide. Rong Chen Zi was mildly startled, then finally understood she wanted to be carried. He picked He Bang up and could find no room to be exasperated — he could only smile helplessly.
Ye Tian had already gone to bed. Opening the door to find Rong Chen Zi holding a delicate and pretty little girl, she was briefly taken aback, then immediately caught on and exclaimed with delight: “Oh! She can take human form now! Come here, let me get a good look!”
He Bang was also happy to see her and immediately stretched out both arms to throw them around her neck. The two girls, one big and one small, looked each other over with curiosity. Ye Tian was already imagining what new hairstyle she might do for her. Rong Chen Zi stood in the doorway — was there truly no place for him in this?
However, the next day, after Ye Tian and Rong Chen Zi had finished morning prayers, He Bang was still sleeping. Qingzhen was preparing lotus root starch dumplings for He Bang when someone came up from the base of the mountain. One look at the visitor and Rong Chen Zi’s expression changed. The visitor, on the other hand, wore a full smile upon seeing him: “Daoist Master, it has been some time. I trust you are well?”
Rong Chen Zi paused slightly, then gently straightened his sleeves and received him with proper courtesy: “Your Majesty the Dragon King, what great matter brings you to our humble monastery?”
The visitor was none other than the Dragon King of the Eastern Sea. Even Ye Tian’s expression changed at the sight of him. She had the presence of mind to immediately catch Qingzhen’s eye. Unfortunately, Qingzhen was not clever enough to read her meaning — he thought Ye Tian was worried about He Bang going hungry and hurried off to bring her the lotus root starch dumplings.
The Dragon King had white hair and beard, horns upon his head, and a kindly expression on his face: “Daoist Master, I will be candid with you. I have come only to take back my Lingxia Sea Sovereign. Yesterday I observed the celestial signs, and her injuries should be healed by now. I will not trouble the Daoist Master to go on caring for her.”
Rong Chen Zi’s hands tightened: “Your Majesty, what do you mean by this?”
The Elder Dragon King’s smile did not waver; his bearing was dignified and gracious: “Why does the Daoist Master ask what he already knows? The matter of the Resonant Serpent was a demon crossing its tribulation to ascend. He Pan is an official of my Sea Clan to begin with — ahem — eliminating the Resonant Serpent could also be considered acting on Heaven’s behalf, so this… sustaining injuries in the line of duty is what it was. The benefits we provide in the Sea Clan have always been excellent. What is more, our Lingxia Sea Sovereign demonstrated exceptional courage. It is an honor for the Sea Clan. Naturally this king would come in person to bring her back.”
At this point, not only Rong Chen Zi, but even Ye Tian understood: “I must say, you people have the nerve to be this shameless!” She was furious. No wonder the Dragon King had turned a blind eye at the time — he had calculated everything perfectly long ago, intending for He Pan to remain with the Sea Clan after her ascension. Now that He Bang carried both wind and water spiritual essences and had crossed her immortal tribulation, her value had skyrocketed a hundredfold — she would be sought after wherever she went. And he had moved swiftly to secure her first.
Rong Chen Zi said nothing, brow furrowed in silent deliberation. But Ye Tian showed no courtesy whatsoever. She immediately changed her words: “She is not here! She… she, she…” Ye Tian gritted her teeth and made up her mind. “She died when she killed the Resonant Serpent! If you want river clams, there are plenty of them. Go catch your own in the spring at the back of the mountain!”
The Dragon King was naturally not so easily fooled. He rose to his feet and, with a light wave of his hand, a dozen octopuses appeared behind him, each balancing a dish of food on its head. Ye Tian pressed a hand to her forehead; even Rong Chen Zi closed his eyes, unable to bear watching. In just a moment, a voice cried out in joy, drawing ever nearer from outside: “Oh! Sea cucumber! Braised sea cucumber with scallions!!”